Whispers in the Dark
by Shadowmaster2323
Summary: "None of us knew how all of this happened. But if we had, I can guarantee that Naru wouldn't have taken the case. Now, we're not only fighting for our lives, but for a lot of innocent people's. The worst part is, we have to fight one of our own." Note: Rated T for violence and language.
1. Chapter 1

**Here's a quick little author's note. This story takes place a few months after the last episode in the anime. **

**I do not own _Ghost Hunt _nor any of its characters.  
**

**And I'm going to keep my pairings a secret for now, only time will tell who gets to be together. **

**Lastly, if you do decide to review, please no flames. **

**Enjoy~**

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**Mai's PoV: Thursday May 20th**

None of us knew how all of this happened. But if we had, I can guarantee that Naru wouldn't have taken the case. Now, we're not only fighting for our lives, but for a lot of innocent people's. The worst part is, we have to fight one of our own.

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**Normal PoV: Three days ago.**

"Hello! Welcome to Shibuya Psychic Research!" Mai Taniyama announced as a young woman entered the office. She had long blonde hair and green eyes. She seemed to be in her mid-thirties. "My name is Mai Taniyama. How can I help you?"

"I was wondering if I could speak to your boss. You see, I just purchased this house and I'm afraid it might be haunted."

"Oh my. Let me go see if he can take you now." Mai said as she led the other woman to a black couch. After the woman was seated, Mai headed down a hallway that held two doors. One was Kazuya Shibuya's, or Naru, office. The other held Naru's assistant Lin Kōujo. Mai cracked open her boss's door just enough to stick her head through.

"Hey Boss, we have a lady here who wants to speak with you about a case. Is now okay?" Mai questioned. The last time she had just invited someone into his office without asking him she had gotten quite a lecture and was on cleaning duty for two weeks.

"Give me a few minutes and I'll be out." Naru's voice replied.

Mai nodded and shut the door. She returned to the lobby and lashed the woman a smile. "He'll just be a few minutes."

The young woman smiled appreciatively "Thank you." Mai returned to her desk and began working on school work. She had started to fall behind due to the overabundance of cases they received over the past few months. She was interrupted however when the woman began to speak. "So, what can you tell me about Shibuya Psychic Research?"

"Well, SPR is one of the top research programs in Japan. Our record's almost flawless." Mai explained proudly. She loved her job.

"And do you bring in any outside help?" The woman questioned.

Mai nodded, "Yes. We usually bring in our friends when an exorcism is needed."

The woman smiled, "And if you don't mind my asking, who are your friends?"

"Well… There's Tokugawa Hōshō . He's a Buddhist monk. Ayako Matsuzaki, a shrine maiden. We have a Catholic priest whose name is John Brown."

"And do you have a medium?" The woman interrupted.

"We work very closely with Masako Hara." Naru's voice announced has he entered the room. He extended a hand to the woman. "My name is Kazuya Shibuya. How may we assist you?"

"Nice to meet you. My name is Asako Suzuki. You see, I just recently purchased this house. Everything was normal at first, but then about a week after I moved in everything changed. It was just little things at first, like a book being in a different spot or doors being open when I thought I had closed them. And then it escalated. I began to hear footsteps on the second floor. I live alone, so I know that it wasn't anyone I know. It's not likely that someone broke in, because it happens all the time. Then I started hearing full on conversations. I was able to brush most of it off, until it started telling me to leave. It even started attacking me. It would throw things and even scratch me. I don't want to sell the house because I can't afford it, but I'm so scared to stay. Can you help me?"

Mai was silent as she and Ms. Suzuki waited for a response. Naru seemed to be in deep thought, which didn't surprise Mai. She knew that he only took cases that truly interested him. "Okay. We'll take your case. Leave your address with Mai. We'll be out tomorrow to conduct our investigation." Naru said before leaving the two women.

"Oh, okay." Ms. Suzuki said. She gave Mai her address and a brief set of directions. "Thank you, so much."

"No problem, that's what we're here for." Mai smiled. Ms. Suzuki smiled back before bowing and leaving.

"What a strange woman." Mai mused as she turned her attention back on her school work.

"Did you get the address?" Naru asked as he reentered the room.

"Yep." Mai said. "Did you call the others?" Mai's smile faded.

"No? Don't we usually wait a day to call them in?" Mai questioned.

"Yes, but from the sounds of it, we're dealing with an actual spirit. I've never came across a poltergeist that does everything that she described." Naru explained as he turned around to head back to his office, he stopped after a few steps however. "Oh, and Mai, when you're done contacting everyone I would like some tea. And not the brand you used last time. It tasted horrible."

Mai hung her head and sighed. "Why is my boss such a jerk?" She muttered. She picked up the phone and called each of the group members. Ever since the investigation at the 'cursed' house, Naru had basically accepted them all as members at SPR. They began sharing major cases, except for Masako due to her television show and the fact Naru hated being in the public's eye.

Because Naru decided to let her call, she took it upon herself to decide how it was going to down. She figured that it would be easiest if everyone met up at SPR. This way everyone would be able to find their way. Not to mention that now she could use the guys' help with unloading the equipment. She called everyone and described the situation. Everyone naturally agreed to come along. Once everything was set up Mai proceeded to make Naru's tea.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you everyone who has reviewed, favorited, or followed my story! I'm glad you're all enjoying this. I'm not sure how long it will take for updates, due to my college work. But I promise there will be at least one a week, if not more. There will be a lot more action in upcoming chapters.  
Also, I prefer to call Naru, by Kazuya. I'm not sure why, but I do. **

**14AmyChan: That's all part of the mystery. I'm keeping the pairing a secret. (X I don't want to give anything away! **

**Anyway, here's chapter two!  
**

**Enjoy~**

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**Day One: Friday May 21st 9:30 A.M.**

Mai yawned as she entered the office. Of course, Kazuya and Lin had already been in the office when she arrived. She had grown accustomed to Kazuya and Lin arriving before she did. Mai looked at the clock and sighed. It was only nine thirty. Everyone wouldn't show up until ten o'clock, like they usually did. They wouldn't leave of course until ten thirty. This gave the group half an hour to get all the equipment in the truck and then to argue over who rode with who. Or actually for Kazuya to pick whom he wanted to ride with.

This always irritated Mai because he without doubt would choose Masako. She always rode with him. She never understood why. He never even offered for anyone else to ride with him. He just, _picked_ her.

_It's not that I'm jealous or anything._ Mai thought to herself. _Who am I kidding? I'm totally jealous. I mean why does she always get picked to ride with him? He never asks me… _Mai sighed and placed her head on her hands as she became lost in thoughts of her boss.

Mai turned her attention as the door opened. "Ladies first."

"Thank you, John." Makaso's soft voice said as she entered the room. John followed behind.

"Hello Mai." John greeted as he noticed the young woman's presence.

Mai gave him a smile, "Morning. How are you today?"

"I'm fine, thank you." John smiled back. Masako and Mai shared an acknowledging nod. While they were no longer strangers to each other, they still considered themselves rivals. However, it was far too early for them to start instigating each other. Mai still thought of Masako as a friend, even though she irritated the other girl to no end.

John and Masako each took a seat in the meeting room. It was a small room that was just down the hallway. Inside, the room held a large couch. On the opposite side was a love seat and a chair. At each end of the table was a backless chair and a regular chair. In the center of the furniture was a large glass table. This was the typical meeting place before and after a case.

"I wonder where Ayako and Monk are." John mused as he sat down on the love seat. Masako took the chair beside him and Mai sat on the backless chair. While, they didn't exactly have assigned seats, they each did typically sit in the same spots.

"They are probably arguing about which one of them gets to walk through the door first." Masako commented as she held the sleeve of her red kimono to her mouth. It was a habit she had picked up when she was little. Before her mother had died, she had shown her that instead of showing emotions to the spirits, it made it easier if she hid her expressions. Since then, Masako found herself almost always wore a kimono, and always hid her facial expressions.

"Will you just get out of my way!" A high pitched voice squealed.

"You're the one who's in the way!" A manly voice growled. The three sighed as two figures approached the door way. They were heavily pushing on each other as they both tried to enter the door way.

"Haven't you ever heard of _ladies first_?!" Ayako growled as she pushed off from the door way. She effectively pushed Monk up against a wall.

"Too bad you're not a lady!" Monk growled as he pushed back.

"How dare you!" She screeched.

"How dare _you_!" Monk growled back.

"Just get out of my way!" Ayako growled as she made one final move to enter the room first. Finally, the two of them finally both stumbled through the doorway. Once they were both inside, they scoffed at each other. Ayako pushed her hair back.

"So, how's everyone's morning?" Monk asked as he straightened his jacket. Everyone laughed at his bluntness.

"So, you're all finally here. I assume Mai has told you about the case we have." Kazuya announced as he walked into the room. Everyone nodded. "Alright, let's not waste any more time. Let's get the rest of the van packed. Ms. Hara, you will be riding with me. Correct?"

"Of course." Masako flashed a triumphant smile towards Ayako and Mai. Each of them silently seethed. Neither of them understood why he always chose Masako.

"Alright then. Let's go." Lin said as he passed by the room. Everyone sighed to themselves. They were always in such a rush.

Within ten minutes, everyone was in their separate cars. Lin drove the van full of equipment with Kazuya and Masako. Ayako, John, Monk, and Mai all rode in the last car.

"I don't understand why he always picks her to ride with him!" Ayako seethed.

"I know?! Maybe you were right. Maybe she does have something over him." Mai muttered.

"I think they're a little jealous." Monk muttered to John.

"WHAT?!" Both women screeched.

"Nothing…" Monk attempted to cover.

"I am _not_ jealous!" Ayako growled as she smacked Monk upside the head.

"Hey! Hasn't anyone ever told you not to hit the driver!" Monk yelled back.

"Guys… Can't we all just get along?" the young priest asked. He sighed as the two began to yell at each other.

"You two sound like a married couple." Mai commented. The two bickering adults became quiet. They silently shared glares in the mirror. "If I knew that would have stopped the fighting, I would have started saying that a long time ago."

It took approximately an hour and a half to get to the house. It was far back away from town. The past half an hour had been back roads. They hadn't seen a house in over five miles. Mai shivered as she looked out the window. They were currently driving through a wooded area. The road was surrounded by trees on both sides.

Finally, they reached a clearing. There was a small two story farm house. It seemed well built and well kept.

"This place gives me the creeps." Mai muttered.

"You and me both…" Ayako agreed. They all had a creepy feeling. As they all pulled up, everyone proceeded to exit the two cars. Ms. Suzuki was standing outside on the front porch. She smiled and waved.

"Thank you all for coming!" She shouted as they all exited their cars.

"It's no problem. It's our job." Monk said.

"You all must be the friends that Mai told me about." Ms. Suzuki said as she observed the group. As they all introduced themselves, Mai noticed how Ms. Suzuki seemed to be interested with Masako the most. It concerned her a little.

_Maybe she's just a fan of her show._ Mai thought to herself. She shook her head and shrugged. That was most likely it.

"You can use the first door to the left to put all that stuff in." Ms. Suzuki offered.

"Thank you. Monk, John." Kazuya called from the van. Both men turned their attention towards him. "Can you guys give us a hand?"

"No problem." John said as he and Monk walked over and helped Kazuya and Lin with the equipment. The girls all hovered outside. Ayako was having a conversation with Ms. Suzuki about the house.

"It sounds to me like a simple Earth spirit." Ayako announced. Mai rolled her eyes. Typical Ayako. That was the first conclusion she came to. She always seemed to be wrong too.

Mai turned her attention to Masako. She was staring at the house, with her kimono covering her mouth as usual. "Hey." Mai said, capturing the medium's attention. "Are you okay?"

"This house… There's something different about it." Masako said. "I can't tell what, but I know there's _something_ here."

"Yeah… It gives me the creeps." Mai muttered as she suppressed a shiver.

Once the guys were done unloading the van, Ms. Suzuki offered a tour of the house. Everyone filed into a line. Kazuya was first, of course, followed by Lin, Mai, Monk, John, Masako, and then Ayako.

As soon as she stepped into the house, Masako froze. She let out a small gasp. This caught Ayako's attention.

"Are you okay?" She questioned quietly.

"There's… so… many…" Masako breathed. Her head was spinning. There were just so many spirits in the house. Normally she could handle a lot of spirits, but all of them were trying to talk to her at once. She didn't even hear any of Ayako's questions. Her vision started to become blurry. She tried to blink to clear her eyesight, but it didn't work.

"Masako!" Ayako cried out as the young girl fell backwards.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello everyone! I've been wondering, who would you like to see shipped in this? I, myself, have not picked a definite couple yet. I've been weighing between three different options (still my secret, however). But, I want your guys' input because I'm genuinely curious to see whom you guys would like to end up together. I'd also like to thank any of you who have read, favorited, or followed my story. **

**14AmyChan - Yeah, it's about a month or so after the anime and before the lake. **

**xRainbowNinjax - Thank you for reviewing! Anyway, my bad, xD I'm used to calling him Kazuya. It's just how it comes out xD I'll try to call him Naru more. xD **

**Anyway, here's chapter three everyone. **

**Enjoy~**

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"_Masako!" Ayako cried out as the young woman fell backwards. _

Ayako's motherly instincts kicked in quickly. She always thought of Mai and Masako as her children, and whether she admitted it or not, she was very protective of the two of them. She caught the young medium before she could hit the ground. She gently laid her on the ground. She tapped the young girl's face. "Masako… Can you hear me?" She asked.

"What happened?" Kazuya demanded as he and the others crowded around.

"I'm not sure. When she entered the house, she froze. Then she said 'there's so many' then fainted." Ayako explained.

"So many what?" Monk thought out loud. Everyone pondered for a moment.

"Could it have been too many spirits?" Mai offered. It hadn't been the first time she'd seen Masako faint due to an abundance of spirits in a particular area.

"I think Mai's right." John agreed. Kazuya sighed as he looked at the unconscious girl. Their investigation was already off to an eventful start. This confirmed his suspicions though, there was definitely something in this house.

"Alright, let's put her in the base. Ayako, I need you to make some charms that will keep the spirits out of the base. Lin, take Ms. Hara to the base." Kazuya ordered.

"I'll go get her a blanket and a pillow." Ms. Suzuki offered as she turned and headed down the hallway.

Lin knelt down and gently lifted Masako off of Ayako's lap. He couldn't help but notice how light she was. Everyone followed them to the base. Ayako began working on the charms instantly. She placed one in the door way, one on each wall, one on the ceiling, and one on the floor.

"What are those going to do?" Mai questioned Monk as they all stood around in the base.

"They're going to keep any spirits from entering this room. This way, if it was too many spirits, they won't be able to affect her while she's in here." Monk explained.

"Oh, that makes sense. But I don't understand. How could multiple spirits do this to her anyway? I mean, I know she's passed out before, but never right away." Mai questioned.

"Let me explain for you Mai." Kazuya interrupted.

Mai sighed. _Typical Naru. He's such a joy. Not to mention he's insulting my intelligence, yet again._

"Remember when we investigated the house with the doll, Minnie?" Kazuya started to explain. Everyone nodded, "Good. When Masako felt all the spirits of the children, she fainted. If too many spirits present themselves at once, or reside in an area it can drain her of her energy. Unlike us, her powers are constantly active. She can't stop them."

"Oh wow. That must suck." Mai muttered as all they all turned their attention to the young medium laying on the floor.

"I can imagine." Monk muttered.

"This place isn't going to get set up by itself, Mai." Kazuya pointed out. Mai bit her tongue. No point in arguing with her boss. Giving a defeated sigh, Mai grabbed a couple of cameras and stands, and exited the room as she and the others began setting up for their investigation.

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**Day One: Friday May 21****st**** 2:23 P.M.**

Masako could tell she was laying on the floor. She opened her eyes and looked around. She noticed she was in an unfamiliar place. Closing her eyes, she tried to recall what had happened.

After a few minutes, she sighed. This house was full of spirits, she knew that much. She couldn't remember exactly why they had all decided to show themselves to her at once, however. She sat up and looked around when she noticed a lack of spirits.

"Oh, good. You're up!" Mai exclaimed as she walked over to Masako.

"What happened?"

"You fainted. How are you feeling?" Masako had to give Mai the benefit of the doubt. Even thought they were rivals, she was still so nice to her.

"Tired, but okay. What time is it?"

"It's two twenty-three." Mai informed as she sat down beside Masako. She sat with her legs crossed.

After a few moments of silence, Masako spoke. "Why are you staring at me?" She questioned.

"I- I- Uh. I'm not staring!" Mai exclaimed. Masako simply raised an eyebrow. Mai sighed in defeat, "I'm just wonder what it feels like to be you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well the way Naru explained it, it sounds horrible to constantly have to see spirits…" Mai explained.

Masako sighed, "No, it's not. Usually they're in search of someone who can help them. They want to move on, or at least most of them. All you really have to do is talk to them. That's basically what happened when I walked in, only on a large level. At least fifty of them are trapped here, I know it. And they all confronted me at once. It's very draining."

"Oh…"

"Yeah…"

The two fell into an awkward silence for a few minutes. It was broken however when John entered the room. "It's nice to see you're okay." He said as he gave the two a smile. "Oh, Mai. Kazuya was looking for you. He said something about you getting him tea or something."

Mai sighed, slightly saddened by the fact that her boss only wished for her to do work and not to see her for another reason. "Thanks John." With that, Mai left the room leaving John and Masako to be its only inhabitants.

"Ayako placed barrier charms to keep any spirits from entering here. You'll be safe." John said as he sat beside Masako. In the few months that they had gotten to know each other, they had become close friends. Part of this was due to the fact that they lived in the same neighborhood, so they often found themselves running into each other on the street.

"Oh. Okay." Masako said. Masako became lost in her thoughts. Suddenly, she remembered why the spirits had all surrounded her at once.

John seemed to notice the change in her demeanor, "Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

"You know I can tell when you're lying…" He scolded lightly. He always hated it when she tried to keep burdens to herself. It wasn't just his duty as a priest though. It was just in his nature. He had been, on more than one occasion, the one Masako expressed her feelings with. He was the only one she truly trusted with the information that she told him.

"Secret?" John nodded. He often found that Masako kept a lot to herself, especially when it came to her work. Masako brought her kimono sleeve to her mouth. "The spirits, when they all surrounded me. They weren't trying to get my help, like most do. They were trying to warn me about something."

"Warn you about what?" John asked. He was genuinely concerned now. He never liked it when spirits were against them. In the time had worked with S.P.R. he had seen some horrible things and the last thing he wanted was for one of his friends to get injured or worse.

"I'm not sure. They all tried to warn me at once and I couldn't handle it. But I did feel something before I fainted, and whatever it is, it's not good." Masako mumbled.

"Don't worry, we'll all be careful. We've come across many things, I'm pretty sure we can handle whatever this house can throw at us." John joked. Masako grinned for a second, amused by his positive attitude. He was always the optimistic one of the group. Most times, he was even more positive than Mai.

However her smile faded, "I hope so." She muttered.


End file.
